Binary gender system is the overarching perspective on sex and gender. Sex and gender, in terms of the binary gender system, are stated as being socially and inherently interwoven to notions of masculinity and femininity. If you are male, then you must be masculine. If you are female, then you must be feminine. In response to this patriarchal perspective of sex and gender, the media has hyper-sexualized men and women with masculinity and femininity, respectively. By definition, men and masculinity, women and femininity, are synonymous with one another; thus, creating a dichotomy between the two. Within the binary gender system, there is only male and female; there is no in between. Embedded in this system is the heteronormative realm. If there is only male and female, masculine and feminine, then man is for woman and woman is for man. By creating this dichotomy and this binary, it invalidates all those that do not fit snugly into this hyper-masculine, hyper-feminine, heterosexual ideal.
The moment that a person is born, the socializing begins. There is always the prenatal question, “Is it a boy or girl?”, so one could also say that this socializing around gender can begin before birth. Following the clarification on the child's gender, the process begins by the appropriated colors of blue and pink. From here it is established that boys play with cars, GI Joes, or violent video games; girls play with dolls, play-kitchens, and read fairytales. According to Hubbard (1990), “This society, on the whole accepts Freud’s assumption that children are sexual beings from birth and that society channels their polymorphously perverse childhood sexuality into the accepted forms.” The key phrase is accepted forms. If a boy does not fit the socialized norm of masculinity, he is considered a sissy. Same with girls, if they do not meet the feminine ideal, they are considered a tomboy. There is a magnitude of socialized differences between the two genders, and a double-standard in terms of what is acceptable for boys is not for girls, and vice versa. For example, males become aware that their penis is a source of pleasure and procreation; whereas, females learn the function of sex and procreation, pleasure does not enter the frame until later (Hubbard 1990). This socialization creates the paradigm that men can indulge in sexual pleasure and women are responsible to give men this pleasure then produce offspring. Although procreation as the reason for sex does not hold the same way it has previously, women’s sexual desires and pleasures are still subordinate to that of men. This dynamic affects the way that men and women are socialized to interact with one another. Intermittently, the expectations for sex differs between males and females, "While sex is presented to women as something to be and something to do, for men it becomes somewhere to go and something to have" (Attwood 2005) in this sense, women are expected to perform sex and to do it, whereas men are required to achieve sex as if it were a trophy in a competition, or as if acquiring a material good.
The biggest influence on the binary gender system is the media in terms of establishing and perpetuating the ideals of femininity and masculinity. From here, the concept of agenda setting is derived, tying media to these expectations. Brown notes: “Agenda Setting/Framing Theories propose that the media tell people both what is important in the world around them, and how to think about the events and people who inhabit that world” (Brown 2002). This is to say that the images and stereotypes in media are constantly shown and reiterated. Women are shown as the “gatekeepers” of sex and men are shown as the sexual aggressors. “Topics and images that are frequent and prominent in the media become topics that audiences think are important” (Brown 2002). If audiences see these stereotypes as important, they begin or continue to emulate these ideas; which perpetuates the cycle of these notions. When the media portrays certain ideas, it gives the audience feedback as to what may be considered appropriate and inappropriate behavior. This parallels with the Cultivation Theory in that repetition of images, stereotypes, and ideologies reaffirms the binary gender system.
The media exhibits scripts for each gender to follow. “ …[Adrienne Rich outlines that] the Heterosexual Script entitles boys/men to prioritize their own sexual desire, to act on their sexual needs, to perceive their hormones to be 'out of control,' and to promise power and status to women in return for sex. …Thus, the Heterosexual Script compels girls/women to deny or devalue their own sexual desire, to seek to please boys/men, to ‘wish and wait’ to be chosen, and to trade their own sexuality as a commodity” (Kim 2007). As female sexual desire is denied, female sexuality has become commodified. For example, the notorious Rabbit vibrator has made sexual pleasure more safe, accessible, and mainstream. According to Attwood (2005), "... this moment is typical of a contemporary cultural trend towards representing women's sexual pleasure as fashionable, safe, aesthetically pleasing and feminine." The sex industry reconstructed the marketing strategy to appeal to wider consumer base through creating friendly and fashionable toys. Toys and accessories are now apart of the feminine realm. Attwood asserts, "It is striking that in this repackaging of sex across the range of brands, there is a very clear perception that sex must be made over as nice, bright, and accessible. This is achieved by clearly signifying sexual representations, products and practices as stylish, classy, and fashionable." By commodifying sex for women, it continues the consumption and commodification of gender. Being a women is to be hyper-feminine which requires beauty products, fashion, and the notion of "being made-up."
Media depicts men as hyper-masculine beings that are in the aggressive pursuit of sex. According to Brooks’ Centerfold Syndrome (1995), men are just as victimized by the media as women. In media images, a man’s masculinity is not only defined by his muscles but is also defined by his status and the objects and women around him. The Centerfold Syndrome consists of five factors: voyeurism, objectification, the need for validation, trophyism, and the fear of true intimacy (Brooks 1995). The Centerfold Syndrome acknowledges that women are objectified by men, but it also posits that men are required to fill the role of being the objectifiers. Through cultural expectations, this power dynamic explores further the socialized relationship between men and women. Brooks also notes that the idea of masculinity is vague therefore creating the need for men to constantly validate their masculinity. This notion can be seen in advertisements where men are positioned as power figures surrounded by material objects and/or objectified women. As women are objectified, men's bodies become invisible, invincible, and detachment machines. Moye notes that when it can be glimpsed, the male porn body is mechanized as a piece of equipment; there is an obsession with size, quantity, technique and drive” (Attwood 2005). The pleasure is only seen through the facial expression of the female; whereas the male remains invisible. The male must be validated through the female who is meanwhile being objectified by the male. The binary gender system continues to cycle through the media out into society only to perpetuate an insecure, unhealthy depiction of gender and sexuality for both men and women.
